Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski & Audra McDonald Toast ‘Ladies Who Lunch’ In Highlight From Sondheim Birthday Celebration

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Last night’s Take Me to the World: A Sondheim 90th Birthday Celebration online all-star tribute concert got off to a rocky start – technical difficulties pushed the YouTube special more than an hour past its planned “curtain” – but the impressive line-up, top-notch performances and celebratory mood combined for an all’s-well evening.

Watch the concert below.

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The show – a Zoom-style benefit (with pre-recorded videos and a live segment by host Raul Esparza – benefitted Artists Striving To End Poverty, and gathered scores of performers associated with Sondheim to perform the great composer’s works.

Among the highlights:

  • Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski and Audra McDonald doing a faux-tipsy “Ladies Who Lunch” from Company;

  • Bernadette Peters singing “No One Is Alone” from Into The Woods;

  • Patti LuPone’s “Anyone Can Whistle”;

  • Neil Patrick Harris’ “The Witches Rap” from Into The Woods;

  • Donna Murphy’s “Send In The Clowns” from A Little Night Music;

  • Annaleigh Ashford and Jake Gyllenhaal duetting on “Move On” from Sunday in the Park With George;

  • Beanie Feldstein and Ben Platt on “It Takes Two” from Into The Woods and Victor Garber singing “Johanna” from Sweeney Todd

  • Laura Benanti’s “I Remember” from Evening Primrose

Also appearing were Linda Lavin, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Melissa Errico, Judy Kuhn, Randy Rainbow, Lea Salonga, Joanna Gleason, Nathan Lane, Steven Spielberg, Mandy Patinkin, Sutton Foster, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Kelli O’Hara, Aaron Tveit, Maria Friedman, Iain Armitage, Katrina Lenk, Michael Cerveris, Brandon Uranowitz, Stephen Schwartz, Elizabeth Stanley, Chip Zien, Alexander Gemignani and, from the cast of Pacific Overtures at Classic Stage Company, Ann Harada, Austin Ku, Kelvin Moon Loh and Thom Sesma.

Check out the entire concert, sponsored by Broadway.com, below. Individual performances will be posted throughout the day.

Here is the line-up, along with time markers:
0:18 – Stephen Schwartz – “Prologue” (Follies) 3:28 – Broadway Musicians – “Overture” (Merrily We Roll Along) 8:47 – Sutton Foster – “There Won’t Be Trumpets” (Anyone Can Whistle) 12:47 – Neil Patrick Harris – “The Witch’s Rap” (Into the Woods) 16:26 – Kelli O’Hara – “What More Do I Need?” (Saturday Night) 19:56 – Judy Kuhn – “What Can You Lose?” (Dick Tracy) 23:53 – Katrina Lenk – “Johanna” (Sweeney Todd) 27:11 – Aaron Tveit – “Marry Me a Little” (Company) 32:58 – Beanie Feldstein & Ben Platt – “It Takes Two” (Into the Woods) 36:25 – Brandon Uranowitz – “With So Little to Be Sure Of” (Anyone Can Whistle) 41:04 – Melissa Errico – “Children and Art” (Sunday in the Park with George) 46:20 – Randy Rainbow – “By the Sea” (Sweeney Todd) 49:21 – Elizabeth Stanley – “The Miller’s Son” (A Little Night Music) 54:21 – Mandy Pantinkin – “Lesson #8” (Sunday in the Park with George) 59:05 – Maria Friedman – “Broadway Baby” (Follies) 1:02:36 – Lin-Manuel Miranda – “Giants in the Sky” (Into the Woods) 1:05:46 – Lea Salonga – “Loving You” (Passion) 1:08:28 – Laura Benanti – “I Remember” (Evening Primrose) 1:14:06 – Chip Zien – “No More” (Into the Woods) 1:19:27 – Josh Groban – “Children Will Listen/Not While I’m Around” (Into the Woods/Sweeney Todd) 1:25:13 – Brian Stokes Mitchell – “The Flag Song” (Assassins) 1:28:04 – Michael Cerveris – “Finishing the Hat” (Sunday in the Park with George) 1:33:28 – Linda Lavin – “The Boy From…” (The Mad Show) 1:37:10 – Alexander Gemignani – “Buddy’s Blues” (Follies) 1:41:08 – Ann Harada, Austin Ku, Kelvin Moon Loh & Thom Sesma – “Someone in a Tree” (Pacific Overtures) 1:50:59 – Raúl Esparza – “Take Me to the World” (Evening Primrose) 1:53:55 – Donna Murphy – “Send in the Clowns” (A Little Night Music) 1:58:47 – Christine Baranski, Meryl Streep & Audra McDonald – “The Ladies Who Lunch” (Company) 2:03:31 – Annaleigh Ashford & Jake Gyllenhaal – “Move On” (Sunday in the Park with George) 2:08:14 – Patti LuPone – “Anyone Can Whistle” (Anyone Can Whistle) 2:11:46 – Bernadette Peters – “No One Is Alone” (Into the Woods) 2:17:49 – Ensemble – “I’m Still Here” (Follies)

 

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